Dissociation rate constant of the biotin-streptavidin complex

We measured the dissociation rate constants of the biotin/streptavidin and biotin/egg avidin complexes by following the release of radiolabeled biotin from the preformed complexes in the presence of excess unlabeled biotin. For separation of bound and free labeled biotin we employed ultrafiltration with disposable microconcentrators. The dissociation rate constant for underivatized streptavidin was 2.4 x 10(-6) s-1, or approximately 30-fold higher than that observed for egg avidin 7.5 x 10(-8) s-1). The value for streptavidin was further increased after derivatization with an acridinium ester label. Both biotin binding proteins exhibited a faster initial phase, suggesting binding site heterogeneity due to partial subunit dissociation or denaturation. The convenience of the method and the relatively fast dissociation of biotin from streptavidin render the dissociation rate constant a practical experimental criterion for monitoring the integrity of the binding site during purification and derivatization procedures.